The original lineup of Asia will celebrate what has become perhaps the band’s most productive period with a new album, a reissue of their career-making debut on its 30th anniversary and a massive world tour.XXX will be released on Monday, July 2, 2012, through Frontiers Records. The advance single, called “Face on the Bridge” is set for release digitally worldwide on Monday, May 14, 2012, but you can preview it here!

Vocalist John Wetton, speaking with Something Else!, says the symbiotic writing relationship with Geoff Downes fell right back into place — despite Asia’s many ups and downs.

The band, which also includes Carl Palmer and Steve Howe, began the 1980s as one of the decade’s most celebrated supergroups, but only recorded together in its initial configuration for two albums. The original quartet finally reunited in 2006 and, with XXX, have already issued three albums of new material.

XXX will be released on CD, collector’s edition CD/DVD (featuring new music videos and behind the scenes footage), and on a limited edition vinyl. Produced by Mike Paxman, the album will feature a cover illustration by Roger Dean. Asia’s self-titled LP, which spent nine weeks at the top of the Billboard Top 100 chart in 1982, will also be reissued.

From the first, Wetton says, working with Downes “was like a marriage made in heaven. We clicked instantly. Every time I had a chorus, he could provide a verse – and vice versa. And we never looked back. We’re still writing today, and it’s one of the easiest relationships that I have. We just don’t stop. That creativity doesn’t go away, and it’s a gift.”

Wetton is a former member of King Crimson, UK, Roxy Music and Wishbone Ash. Downes and Howe are also members of Yes. Carl Palmer was a founding member of Emerson Lake and Palmer. Downes was also in the Buggles, while Howe was part of GTR with former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett.

Planet Rock will launch an exclusive 48-hour ticket pre-sale for Asia’s UK leg of the 30th Anniversary tour at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, April 25, 2012. Fans can order their tickets from www.planetrock.com. From Friday, April 27, tickets will go on sale to the general public from the 24-hour ticket hotline: 0844 478 0898, www.thegigcartel.com.

The Something Else! webzine, an accredited Google News affiliate, has been featured in The New York Times and NPR.com's A Blog Supreme, while our writers have also been published by USA Today, Jazz.com and UltimateClassicRock.com, among others. Contact Something Else! at reviews@somethingelsereviews.com.